The sound of your heart
by CozyKitsune
Summary: Lila wasn't always afraid of thunder...


**I have a headcanon that lila is afraid of thunder So i decided to write this of course there is some tomatofox as I'm obsessed with the ship!**

* * *

Nathanaël sighed quietly the class was so boring especially since he couldn't afford to draw in this class, usually Lila would talk in science she didn't like it much either.

he turned his attention to Lila, sitting quietly by the window. There was a sudden flash of light, a sudden rumble. The storm had raged all afternoon, but now he saw Lila flinch.

Was she frightened of thunder? She had never said so. But then, it was Lila.

* * *

At three in the morning the thunder crashed, and the timing could not have been worse. Lila pulled the covers up over her head and pushed her way down into the middle of the bed. She wished she felt a little safer. She wished the blankets would block out the sounds, the flashes of light, and the memories.

* * *

 _Lila had not always been afraid of thunder. It had begun on a rainy Saturday afternoon when she was six years old. Her mother was doing overtime at work like usual. Her father had the day off which was rare. They had gone to the park._

 _The rain had started barely half an hour after they had got there, and they had run home through the falling water. Cornelio had carried his daughter in his arms, even though she was really getting a little old for that kind of thing. He had always spoilt her. He put her down only to unlock the front door, and they dashed inside just as the first crashes of thunder were to be heard outside._

 _"Ahhhh, Lila!" He laughed. "We were silly not to take coats, no…?" He fetched a towel from the bathroom, wrapped it around her, rubbing it over her hair. "Don't tell your mommy!"_

 _There was rumble crash of thunder outside. Lila jumped slightly, then looked up at her dad. "What is thunder?" She asked._

 _Cornelio was stumped. The truth was, he had no idea. So, until Aria could come home and explain it, he had to resort to his usual measures._

 _"It's the sound of a monster coming to gobble you up!" He growled, tickling her._

 _"Daddy, don't be silly."_

 _"…I'm not daddy!" Cornelio continued bravely. "I'm a big nasty monster! Roar!"_

 _"Daddy…" Lila was not impressed, but thankfully, the phone rang. Lila could tell from his tone when he spoke into it that it was not good news. Her heart sank. She knew something bad had happened. Finally, he returned, running around, pushing sodden shoes back on._

 _"Daddy has to go out to work there's been an emergency, Lila." He explained, hurriedly. "So you're going to be by yourself for a while… Ah, but don't worry, you'll be just fine!" He wrapped her up in a quick hug. "Now you be careful, Lila, and if you need anything, you run next door, okay?"_

 _The thunder rumbled. Lila nodded, and her father left hastily._

 _Alone inside the flat, the thunder seemed very loud. It seemed to reverberate through the whole flat, booming like a gunshot. She wondered if her parents would come back. The thunder rang again, startling her. She grabbed the phone, dragged it across the room, and hid with it under the table. She tried to be brave, tried to imagine that every time the thunder boomed it was someone knocking on the door to come get her. That just made the loneliness worse. So she stayed and listened to the thunder, even though she didn't want to._

 _It was late when the phone began to ring. She snatched it up, hopeful._

 _"Hello?"_

 _"Lila? Are you okay?" Cornelio didn't wait for an answer, half panicked. "Listen sweetie, daddy has to stay at the work and I won't be back tonight. I need you to go and stay over with the neighbours until mommy comes back, okay? They can take care of you."_

 _"…Okay." Lila said. "Are you two okay?"_

 _"We're fine, sweetie, we just had to go to a company meeting, that's all. I have to go, Lila, be a good girl, okay? I'll be home in the morning."_

 _"Okay." Lila said again. "Bye."_

 _"Bye, Lila! Love you!" He hung up, anxious to get back to his work._

 _Lila was now under the table, storing up all the courage she had. She could make the journey to next door. It would only take a minute. She poked her head out from under the table, and the lightning flashed again. The thunder roared, a darkness ready to devour her._

 _She shrank back, and couldn't move._

 _She was alone like usual with only her thoughts for company. Her parents were always at work she thought she would be used to being alone but the emptiness and loneliness inside always got deeper. I'm always going to be alone no one will ever understand me. Lila thought as the tears ran down her cheeks hugging her arms around her knees, outside the lightning came in sheets._

* * *

Lila pushed her way further down under the covers, curling into a ball, determined.

"I'm not scared." She chanted. She may have been woken up by the thunder. She might hate it. But she was a logical, rational person and she wasn't frightened. "I'm not scared. I'm not scared. I'm-"

She was interrupted by another shout of thunder and her own yelp. This was no good. She had to distract herself.

"I know." She muttered, to fill up the silence that would only leave her anticipating the next attack. "If I go and make breakfast now, I'll have more time to catch up on sleep in the morning!"

She let another rumble of thunder go by, pretending she didn't notice her own flinching, and then made a dash for the kitchen. She turned on the lights, the radio, drew the curtains, but it was no use. She could still hear it. And see it. And feel it, she was shaking. It was a bad storm tonight.

There was another bang and she flinched again, shutting her eyes tightly. Then she forced herself to open them, pull herself together, and stand up straight. She was determined. She wasn't a little kid any more. This fear was irrational and irrelevant and she would beat it. So she would make breakfast. She reached into the cupboard, barely shaking at all, removing a glass dish to get to the plates underneath it.

Then the lightning flashed and the thunder crashed so hard the window rattled. She jumped, and the dish fell, smashing. She slumped down to the floor, drawing her knees up to her chest, her feet away from the shards. She had been wrong after all. She couldn't do this. Especially not now. Her father and Mother weren't home, either, Working again not that it surprised her they never seemed to take a break.

Thunder. She jumped. She couldn't do this. Not on her own. But there was nobody here.

She knew that her Parent's would maybe come running, had they known of her fear. But she had always been careful not to show it in front of them or anyone for the matter she didn't like people to see her weaknesses. But now she wished someone was near.

It was three thirty am, there was a storm outside, and she was all alone.

And then, there was a knock at the door.

Lila froze, sure she must have imagined it. Something of that first time still sticking with her. But no, there it was, an urgent pounding. Had someone been hurt? She knew she should answer it. People didn't knock on your door at half three in the morning without a good reason, especially not hammer at it so desperately. She clung onto the counter and dragged herself up determinedly.

Then came the thunder, very close, and the lightning, and the lights flickered and went out. She was unable to suppress another small shudder. She sank back down again. The front door seemed impossibly far away. Even the prospect of company would not move her.

So the company came to her, so to speak. Mainly because she had forgot to lock the door so he opened it. Of course, she should have known who it was.

"Lila!" Nathanaël shouted, urgently. "Lila, where are you?!"

Lila didn't bother to wonder why he was there. She was glad to see him. And this was exactly like him. But…

"Nathanaël!" She called through, voice shaking a little. "Don't come in!"

This was followed by a huge thunder clap. Nathanaël heard her gasp. He couldn't stay away, and ran for the kitchen. "Lila?" He said, gently. "Are you in here…?"

The lightning came, and he saw her illuminated, shuddering in the corner. "Lila…" He moved to kneel in front of her, but she protested again.

"Nathanaël, be careful! There's broken glass… I dropped a dish… I'm fine, really…" She drew her knees closer to her. "It's late. You should go home."

"No." He replied, moving closer. He found what he hoped was a glass free piece of floor and came and sat down beside her. "You're scared aren't you, Lila…? I'm sorry I took so long."

"I…" She risked seeing lightning to lift her head from her knees and looked at him. "You know, Nathanaël, you haven't really explained what you're doing here."

"Oh!" He said, rather sheepishly, and added nothing more.

"Or why you're soaking wet." Lila continued, with a frown.

"Well, um, when I heard the thunder, I thought…" He pressed his hands together awkwardly. "That I should come and check you were alright."

"Did the storm wake you up as well?"

"Um… I was awake… because the weather forecast said there might be storms and I was worried I wouldn't wake up in time."

"You stayed up?" Lila repeated, frowning in confusion.

"Um…"

"Why are you so wet? How hard is it raining?" She demanded.

"Pretty hard… but, um, you know I only live a little while away so I decided to… walk."

"…Weren't you cold?"

"Ah, no!" He grinned wildly. "I just ran really fast so it kept me warm!"

Lila processed all this very slowly. He had stayed up, and ran all the way here in the rain, just in case she got frightened.

"You're an idiot." She informed him.

"…You could just say Thanks like a normal person." Nathanaël replied, annoyed.

Then came the sound Lila hated the most, and suddenly, he found her wrapping her arms round him. He could feel her trembling, and his heart broke. He pulled her nearer.

"It's okay…" He whispered. "It's okay, Lila, I promise. I'm here… it can't hurt you… it's okay…"

Her grip around him tightened, though he wasn't sure why. The storm was passing, the bursts coming less often. He didn't push her away.

"Don't go, Nathanaël." She said, very quietly.

"I won't." He reassured her. Lila pressed her head to Nathanaël's chest listening to the sound of his heart seemed to drown out the clashes of the thunder.


End file.
